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ROY KEANE reckons he has beaten the demons that made him the most feared skipper in football ... and nearly wrecked his career.

Driven by a ferocious inner rage, Keane's controversial role as Sir Alex Ferguson's enforcer has frequently been overshadowed by a mist of red cards, ugly challenges and grim scraps with authority.

But now, at 33 and in the twilight of his astonishing Manchester United career, Keane believes he has exorcised the ghosts that haunted him personally and tormented him on the pitch.

GONE is the fearsome yelling at team-mates.

GONE is the relentless provocation of referees and screaming at opponents.

GONE is the combative attitude that so often proved his undoing.

But the will to win remains. And unfortunately for Manchester City, it's stronger than ever.

Fired by the prospect of victory and knowing that he has never lost to Manchester City in all his time at Old Trafford, Keane is ready for battle.

But not for a fight.

At one time nothing short of perfection would have satisfied him, but it is a chilled and more mellow Keane that helps United negotiate a transitional period that would have had the old Keano blowing a gasket.

"I'm not getting frustrated anymore," he confessed. "I needed to lighten- up so I've been quite relaxed about things.

"I suppose we are going through a transitional stage, but we knew that was going to happen a couple of years ago when we bought the players we did.

"It takes time for a team to come together and people might use that as an excuse, but people simply don't settle in overnight.

"Hopefully it won't take too long before the whole thing really clicks into place and obviously we hope that happens before the end of the season. But believe it or not, I'm quite relaxed about it.

"Looking at the players we've got, the manager, the staff, and the way they're all focused on winning football matches, we have the ability and desire.

"But I know that ultimately people will judge us on our actions, not our intentions - that's what we are paid for."

The new Keane is even willing to shoulder some of the blame for United's problems. He said: "We all know that as a team we have been inconsistent. You don't have to be an expert to see that.

"However, the team are responding to what needs to be done and I'm happy enough because of that.

"We achieved some of what we needed to do with our performance against Sparta Prague and I hope we can continue that tomorrow against Manchester City.

"If you look at the whole team there are a lot of players who can play better, including myself, and if there's more players playing better it stands to reason that the team will too.

"But we are focused and we're certainly not panicking yet.

"I always thought that with the players we have it would only be a matter of time before we scored three or four goals in a match and we did that against Prague. I didn't necessarily think just one player would do it, but it was nice for Ruud van Nistelrooy to score four."

Even the prospect of van Nistelrooy's suspension tomorrow doesn't faze Keane. "You can't just rely on one player," he says.

"We've got some other outstanding players to come in - just look at the strikers we've got."

Former City and Leeds star Alfie Haaland may not believe it, nor will the other victims of Keane's rampage to glory but there is strong evidence to suggest the United skipper is a changed man.

Although he was sent off in the Champions League against FC Porto last season for catching keeper Victor Baia with a flailing boot, Keane has largely kept his nose clean.

In the infamous Battle of Old Trafford last season, the Irishman even acted as peacemaker to save enraged Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira from getting in to bigger trouble after being sent off.

And although his standards are still sky-high, the withering criticism he often directed at unfortunate team-mates is less frequent.

Ferguson believes that Keane's return to the international fold with the Republic of Ireland has given him a new lease of life.

"He may be right, I don't know," says Keane.

"I'm quite happy how things are going with Ireland. But when I'm with Ireland, I'm focused on Ireland. When I'm in Manchester I am focused on United.

"I suppose only time will tell but it's not going too badly at the moment."

For all Keane's new found karma, it won't make him a soft touch in a derby clash United desperately need to win against Kevin Keegan's weakened side.

Failure to secure three points isn't an option for United who still believe Arsenal are catchable, despite the points that separate them. "It's a big game against City," says Keane, "but I think every game you play for Manchester United is important.

"With the points that we're behind Arsenal, we obviously need to get a win.

"If we didn't think we could overhaul Arsenal then there would be no point turning up would there?

"Of course we believe in ourselves. You just have to keep going.

"We've been in positions where we've had leads and lost them and, Jesus, it's not over until you've got that medal in your hands.

"I've said that many times before but it's true. We just need to keep going and stay determined. We'll focus on what we need to do against City then see what comes afterwards."